The Portrait Teacher
by Ignus R
Summary: Another oneshot following 'The Portrait Fan'. Al follows his sister Lily to find out what she does in the early hours of the night.


_This is written pretty much after suggestions by __some of my readers, namely histoire marveilleuse and Zoe Bright- I hope you enjoy, as these are written really fast and in between my actual writings (I am a novelist when not under this nickname…) and other tasks that are stressful. _

_Of course reviews are welcome. I made Hermione a Potions Professor for this setting which follows that of 'the Portrait Fan'. Enjoy!_

_****_

My sister is the sweetheart of Slytherin.

And she's competing for the whole of Hogwarts, really. She is beautiful, she's fun, she's as smart as they come and has no problem sharing the products of her toil over her favourite cauldron- because oh yes, my little sister is well on her way to becoming a potions mistress, even though she's still in her fifth year. In fact, James always says that she is not only Slytherin, but Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff as well, and so the Sorting Hat just picked the house that would keep it in conversations the longest when she got sorted.

Hah. I know better.

Much as my little sis is all of what I've already said, she _definitely_ is Slytherin as they get, too. 'Just a good, virtuous one' uncle Ron keeps saying when the matter comes up, still chewing on the idea and finding it at best odd. Uncle Ron is fun that way- Lily and I take turns making him flush and fidget, trying not to invoke mum's wrath when we lure him into a discussion of the sort. Uncle Ron is so easy.

Back to subject: Lily is very Slytherin indeed, because she can pretty much twist everyone around her little finger and make them dance the hula if she tells them to. I got several instances already to tell you about and I bet by the time she graduates there will be tons more, but I think the most convincing one was back in her third year.

I'd been made prefect then, and I took my job pretty seriously. Slytherin is the coolest house- and I'm on a crusade to drive it into the thick skulls of the world that evil does not get sorted into any one 'evil house', but rather infiltrates via bad nuts getting sorted everywhere. Scorpius has joined forces with me on this one, but seeing as he's in Gryffindor, he has another sort of misconception to grapple with. _His _sorting had been a hilarious one as hell, but that is not my story to tell, and he tells it much better than me anyway.

So, being prefect, I woke up before everyone and slept after everyone, making sure that our Head or anyone else would find nothing contemptible, even if I did. That was how I caught Lily and the portrait, talking late at night.

Yes. _That_ portrait.

After that one time Severus Snape's portrait self had deemed to stop and talk to me, and look at Lily, I had not seen him again except fleetingly as usual, ducking in and out of portraits, hurrying along, watching over but never letting himself be seen clearly enough. He hadn't talked to Lily that day either. He had merely looked at her, smiled a smile I still can't quite decipher, and then left. Lily hadn't said anything either, nor did she want to discuss the matter with me or James, and soon after daily life at school drove the issue out of my mind. I didn't even consider it after Lily began showing amazing aptitude in Potions even in year one. I chalked it all up to aunt Hermione's teaching of the class and her liberal issuing of extra reading and note copies.

But after Lily managed to brew the Draught of Peace as a special credit assignment in her third year, making Slytherin gain 100 points for her work, I began to wonder again, and keep an eye on her in case she was sneaking into the forbidden area of the library or something even nastier without being aware of the risks. You must understand, that mum's story about Riddle's diary was always a horror story meant to warn us.

So when, on my last checking round after I'd stayed up cramming for an exam on Care of Magical Creatures, I saw Lily tiptoeing away with a portrait frame tucked under her arm, I forgot about sleep and followed.

I am pretty good at stealth, and she is definitely not, though to her credit she made no real noise as she directed herself to a door not too far away from the Head of House's quarters. My hairs stood on end with a sort of thrill. Everyone knew where that door led. Everyone knew why it was kept undisturbed and only potions professors and the Headmistress had access to it.

Lily used her wand on Professor Snape's old personal potions lab, and entered with ease that told me it was not her first time.

I wanted to follow suit, but chose to wait enough time to slip in with the most chances of not being noticed. Truly, I heard talk soon after, but still I didn't enter. I waited to smell potions fumes, trusting that Severus Snape would not leave even if he saw me with a possibly dangerous potion still half done.

Lily was carefully stirring when I slipped in, keeping in the shadows and not approaching the candle lit area where she had hung the frame: a work bench well stained with potions traces, up against a wall and very near a book case full of books and little jars and vials. The frame was exactly over the workbench, and Severus Snape was sitting comfortably in the portrait's armchair, watching Lily work.

"That is enough. Now keep from stirring for fifteen minutes, and we can enter the third phase of the potion."

Lily obeyed and smiled up at the portrait.

"I like the way you teach potions, Severus."

My eyebrows shot to my hairline. _Severus!?_ The man in the frame smiled, apparently liking being called by his first name by my sister. He was nothing like he had been with me! I know how much Lily looks like my grandma, but this was driving the point home in a whole different way.

"That is because I am doing so in the way I would aid your grandmother. You are just like her, only better."

"Better?" giggled my sister. "Because I am Slytherin while she was not?"

"Mmmm," the portrait seemed non-committal. "Because you love your brew, while she did not. She wasn't too interested in …anything potions-related."

Professor Snape looked sad, and I bit my lip, feeling suddenly as if I was infringing on something I shouldn't be witness to. Obviously, for Lily to keep the lid on this despite how much everyone craved stories with Professor Snape in them, she had made some sort of promise of privacy. I decided not to make myself known until the man in the portrait had left, at least.

Then, I saw Lily take a deep breath, and I knew she was going to try and con someone, or persuade someone, into doing something.

"Professor…"

"The answer is no," Snape sat up with a small frown in his painted chair. Lily frowned.

"But I haven't even asked the question yet!"

"So much the better, young lady. You were about to pry, and I don't appreciate that. We have an understanding- I teach you all I knew in life, and you keep your questions to yourself." The professor crossed his arms upon his chest.

"I can't understand it! You gave my dad all your memories! Why does it matter if I ask you anything, I've already promised not to tell anyone!" Lily pouted in the way that made my dad cave when he was trying to be adamant. The professor sensibly was looking away though, and didn't seem to be caving.

"That was for a purpose far higher than myself or my dignity or your father's tendency to blab. I fail to see such a purpose at stake for any of your insensitive potential questioning."

I winced to myself. Giving Lily a chance to argue her point was never a good way to get out of the hot spot she put you on.

She bit her lip, looking at the frame the whole time.

"You are the bravest man the wizarding world ever knew- more than Dumbledore or dad himself! But yet you chose to commit suicide… and I need to know what that meant."

"Suicide!?" I could see the man bristle as he gripped the arms of the armchair, leaning forward as if to get up. "I'll have you know that it was Nagini-"

"You knew what was coming, you had planned ahead for everything. I can't imagine that you didn't have what was needed on you to save yourself after Voldemort was deceived. All it would take was- was anti-venom, or something like that! Why did you do it, Severus? Why didn't you want to live?"

Snape frowned but he sat back, and I knew Lily had won the argument. My heart was beating really fast- she had managed to corner the most Slytherin man, like, EVER… to do what she wanted. I knew that she was sincere in her anguish and struggle, but I also knew that she switched to the first name calling on purpose, so that he wouldn't tell her no.

See why she's deservedly into Slytherin?

Professor Snape sighed and gestured to her cauldron.

"Be ready to stir, the time is almost up. You will not speak while I am, clear?"

"Crystal, sir," Lily said meekly, but I caught the note of triumph underneath. I wondered if Snape did too. Probably not, because he began speaking just as Lily began stirring the potion again.

"I remind you that anything I tell you still is for your ears only- if you breach my confidence, I shall not give you a chance to redeem yourself again."

Lily didn't reply over the small pause, and that seemed to satisfy the man in the portrait, who continued.

"I did consider drinking the anti-venom along with a quasi-serum that would allow for the potion to manifest well after the deception that Nagini's poison had killed me, well after your father would be on his way to do what he had to. I stood a chance of survival, as it would also make the bleeding less profuse, and preserve me until someone returned to collect my body. They would find me alive, and it would be up to them to restore me to health and have me survive, or deliver a coup de grace."

There was prolonged silence, and Lily looked up from her stirring until the professor gestured for her to add some ingredient I don't remember. She did, and only after she continued stirring did he end his answer to her question:

"I did not drink the potion to grant me that, and I did die looking into your father's eyes because … frankly, miss Potter, Lily… I did not wish for anyone to murder me."

"Sir?" Lily sounded confused. I was, too.

"At the time, I was a heinous traitor to everyone who stood a chance of finding me, and upon discovery of me being alive, would surely kill me… only to realize afterwards that he had done so wrongfully. See, I knew your father would be too much of a Gryffindor not to tell about me to every Tom, Dick and Harry, and he'd know if an additional spell or suffocation ended me instead of the venom and bleeding out. He'd pursue a murderer of Severus Snape, had there been one. Therefore, I wanted to be found dead… so that my life would not incriminate anyone any further, needlessly, for a ploy well played."

My sister's voice was nearly emotionless and I knew she yet wasn't sure how to process this. But nevertheless she asked:

"And what if Voldemort had won? You would have survived then, no?"

"Perhaps," the Professor acquiesced. "But then, Lily, I would definitely not want to. Take your potion off the fire- it is done. Go and bottle it at once."

"I will take the frame back to the common room first, professor." Lily offered quickly.

But Headmaster Snape smirked and said:

"Not to worry; my frame will be taken care of after you leave."

And he looked towards me, where I was hiding in the shadows, and I knew he had wanted me to listen, too. Lily was too overwhelmed to notice, and just nodded and left- without telling the austere man even so much as a 'thank you'. I did, before unhanging the frame after my sister left with the steaming cauldron floating in front of her. I tried to do so on Lily's behalf, too.

"Don't bother," the Potions Master said. "She will thank me in her own way."

And I think Lily has ever since.


End file.
